Valeria was dressed now, lying back on the furs and watching him, her blue eyes lazy and calm. There was the hint of a smile on her lips.
Maybe one more time…
No! He had things to take care of, things he had to do. He’d been in this tent with her for too long. He stood and grabbed her by the ankle so he could pull her to the edge of the bed.
“What are you doing?” She sat up in a rush, trying to kick her leg out of his hold.
“I can’t have you escaping again.” He locked the shackle around her ankle, and then finished dressing in his tunic and a warm fur.
“I wasn’t even thinking of it,” she insisted, tugging at her chains.
Tristan picked up his sword from the ground next to the bed and strapped it around his waist. “I don’t want to have to worry about you while I’m not here to watch you.”
“Please don’t do this to me, Tristan.” She turned sad eyes up to him.
He steeled his will and headed to the door. “I’ll bring you something to eat,” he said, then left the tent.
The morning was bright and clear and the camp was already a busy flurry of activity with men cooking over fires while others cleaned and readied their weapons. The scouting party he’d sent out had still not returned and he had to consider the fact they might have met up with the Romans and weren’t coming back.
As he moved through the camp looking for Angus, he could feel the restlessness coming from the men. Their battle was far from over and they didn’t want to be caught unawares.
“Beautiful morning, isn’t it?” Angus fell into step beside him, a wide grin on his face.
“I hadn’t noticed,” Tristan grumbled.
Valeria’s beauty rivaled any winter morning and he wanted nothing more than to return to his tent and pass the day with her. She was a distraction he didn’t need. The lives of these men were in his hands and he had a responsibility to do right by them. He couldn’t let Valeria get in the way of his duty.
“I thought I’d find you in a better mood after spending the night enjoying your prize,” Angus said. “Did she put up much of a fight?”
Tristan stopped walking to glare at his friend. “Any word from the scouts?”
“None.” Angus shook his head. “They should return soon.”
“If they don’t, we’ve got trouble.” Tristan considered what his next move should be. There was a good chance the Romans would be coming after them to retaliate for the attack on the wall. A very good chance.
“The men are content to wait and fight on their own ground.”
“No.” Tristan clenched his jaw. “We’ll wait one more day. If the scouts don’t return, we’ll break camp at first light.”
“What of the prisoners?” Angus rested his hand on the hilt of his sword, shifting his attention to their tent off in the distance.
“Ready them for travel. We’ll head to Gaul and trade them for supplies.”
“Then what?”
“We’ll go hunting for more Romans.”
Angus saluted him with his arm over his chest, and then went to spread word among the men of their plans. Tristan would have one more night to enjoy Valeria, and then he would send her off on the next leg of her journey in the north. The sooner he got rid of her, the sooner he could forget she ever existed.
How could he do this? Tristan still intended to keep her shackled. After the night they’d shared, Valeria expected better treatment from him, but he didn’t trust her. She couldn’t blame him really, since she hadn’t given up on her thoughts of escape, although it was only a distant nagging in her mind this morning.
She needed a better plan. Her last attempt had failed miserably and could not be repeated. Leaving Tristan wasn’t going to be so simple. He was stronger and smarter than her when it came to things like this, and if she did manage to escape, she’d never see him again. Would never feel his body heavy atop hers or hear his deep voice in her ear saying bold, wicked things to her.
A shiver of excitement warmed her as she lay curled up on her pile of furs on the ground. Never had she expected joining with a man would be so pleasurable, but then, she’d never met a man like Tristan. One look from him made her heart race, her stomach flutter and her head spin.
She rolled onto her side, propped her elbow up and rested her chin in her hand, trying to suppress her delighted smile. The delicious aching in her limbs fondly reminded her that Tristan had left no part of her untouched. He’d tasted her with his tongue, pleasured her with his fingers and impaled her with his manhood. Over and over.
Gods help her, she wished he’d come back to his tent and do it all again. Was she wrong to feel this way? Anyone else looking at her situation could say he’d raped her, that he’d forced her, but deep down she knew the truth. She’d wanted him. She let him take her, and the way he’d pleasured her made it all too confusing.
Valeria didn’t want to think about it. She didn’t want to think that he might trade her for supplies or weapons. Letting Tristan go wouldn’t be easy for her to do now, and she was afraid he’d cast her off without feeling a thing.
Did she really mean that little to him?
She spent what felt like the longest day of her life shackled to the bed in Tristan’s tent. He came back once with food and water and released her so she could eat and wash. He watched her intently the whole time with a dark, unreadable expression. She sensed he was feeling just as confused by what had happened as she was.
She left her tunic on while she bathed, no longer feeling comfortable being naked in front of him. Finding traces of blood on the insides of her thighs was mildly embarrassing, but she turned her back to Tristan and washed the last evidence of her virginity away. She could worry about the trouble that would bring her later.
They spoke little to each other, and as soon as she’d finished with the food, he shackled her and left his tent.
With nothing else to do, Valeria finally slept. This time in her dreams she saw her escape.
She left Tristan sleeping in his bed and found the tent where the prisoners were being held. The guard posted outside had fallen asleep and she was able to free the men, and among them she discovered Rufus.
She thanked the Gods for such a blessing, yet still they laughed at her. When she asked why they mocked her, no answer came. Angry, she demanded they speak to her. Hadn’t she been loyal to them? Wasn’t she deserving of their compassion?
The most beautiful woman, with flowing black hair and sapphire-blue eyes, came forward, her long white robes floating around her. She smiled warmly at Valeria, like a mother might smile at her petulant child. “You know not of your future, my child, but one day you will have real need of our help. One day you will send us a prayer true from your heart, and that is the one we will answer.”
Valeria awoke with a surprised gasp, covered in sweat, and stared unblinking at the ceiling of the tent. She’d always had vivid dreams from the time she was a small girl. Usually they meant nothing, and sometimes they left her distracted or confused for a short time, but this dream felt so real, the details so tangible that she believed the Gods had chosen to speak to her. Not that what they’d said made any sense. How could there be something more important to pray to them about